The present disclosure relates to a beverage cooling or heating device, and more particularly to a single use device configured to be placed within a beverage to cool or heat the beverage within a container.
The options for providing a cold beverage have been relatively limited. As is well known, ice cubes may be added to a beverage to reduce its temperature When the ice cubes melt, the resulting water released by the ice cubes dilutes the beverage which may adversely affect the taste and appearance of the beverage. In addition, ice cubes are typically added to a beverage at the location where the beverage is prepared. When a beverage is prepared some distance from the point of consumption, the time spent transporting the beverage from the preparation location to the consumption location results in increased melting of the ice cubes and further dilution of the beverage. Moreover, ice cubes must be stored in a freezer or similar cold storage until use to prevent premature melting, therefore ice cubes are rarely available at the point of consumption of the beverage.
One attempt to overcome the problem with ice cubes and dilution of beverages has been the use of re-freezeable ice cubes. Re-freezeable ice cubes are well known and typically have a plastic casing filled with water or another substance with a similar freezing temperature. The re-freezeable ice cubes may be frozen and placed into a beverage in the same manner as a conventional ice cube, but because the ice is encased the problems of dilution are solved. Re-freezeable ice cubes however still suffer from the problem of only being available at the point of preparation of the beverage because they must be maintained in a freezer prior to use. When beverages are transported significant distances, such as is common at some resorts, the re-freezable ice cubes may be ineffective to cool the beverage at the point of consumption.
Similar problems exists with respect to hot beverages. A beverage may be heated at the point of preparation, but begins to cool while being transported to the point of consumption where this is little or no capability to heat or reheat the beverage.
In view of the limitations of previously available products, there remains a need for a beverage cooling or heating device that is capable of cooling or heating a beverage at the point of consumption without diluting the beverage. There also remains a need for a beverage cooling or heating device that is configured for use with standard drinking glasses, including wine glasses, while maintaining a pleasing aesthetic during use.
Presently disclosed is a device that includes a sealed housing configured to be placed into a beverage, a first chamber within the housing that contains a thermal agent, a second chamber within the housing that contains an activating agent for endothermically or exothermically reacting with the thermal agent, and a barrier between the first chamber and the second chamber. The barrier is configured to keep the thermal agent separate from the activating agent, and is further configured to be ruptured upon activation of the device such that the thermal agent and activating agent come into contact with and react with each other.
In some embodiments, the thermal agent is a cooling agent. In some embodiments, the cooling agent is urea and the activating agent is water.
In various embodiments, the housing includes a low density polyethylene, a medium density polyethylene, or a high density polyethylene. In some embodiments, the housing includes a plant based biopolymer.
In some embodiments, the device includes a flavor coating on an exterior surface of the housing, wherein the flavor coating is configured to dissolve in a beverage during use.
In some embodiments, the device includes a coloring agent within the sealed housing, wherein the coloring agent is configured to provide a visual indication in the event of a leak in the sealed housing.
In some embodiments, the device includes a taste additive disposed within the sealed housing, wherein the taste additive is configured to provide a taste indication in the event of a leak in the sealed housing.
In some embodiments, the second chamber is within the first chamber. In some embodiments, the barrier is secured to an interior surface of the housing, and is configured to be ruptured when the housing is flexed. In some embodiments, the barrier is a second chamber housing and is configured to be ruptured when the housing is squeezed.
In some embodiments, the sealed housing is configured to expand upon activation of the thermal agent and the activating agent.
In some embodiments, prior to activation, the sealed housing has a thickness of no greater than 0.25 inches in at least one dimension.
In some embodiments, the device includes a container attachment device secured to the housing and configured to affix the device to the rim of a glass or larger container.
In some embodiments, the thermal agent is a heating agent. In some embodiments, the heating agent is a supersaturated solution of sodium acetate.